Lab Design Conference Speaker Profile: Shrei Crenshaw
2026 Lab Design Conference speaker—Shrei Crenshaw, lab director at Inform Diagnostics
Shrei Crenshaw, lab director at Inform Diagnostics, will be speaking at the 2026 Lab Design Conference in Orlando, FL. Shrei will join Isabel Mandujano, director of laboratory planning at LPA Design Studios (and Lab Design News editorial board member) for a talk entitled “From Cubicles to Specimens—Lessons in Speed, Strategy, and Collaboration from a Lab Conversion,” taking place on May 13 at 8:00-9:00am.
Shrei and Isabel will discuss the transformation of a vacant suburban office building near Dallas into a high-throughput, CLIA-accredited pathology lab. Shrei will share insights from the perspective of a lab director who was an active stakeholder in the design process, working closely with Isabel, the lab planner, to shape a space that meets operational needs while supporting staff and workflow efficiency.
Their session will provide attendees with a unique look at how a lab end user and a planner collaborated to overcome infrastructure limitations, design for flexibility, and implement a strategic occupancy plan. Attendees will gain practical lessons on creating functional, efficient lab spaces under tight timelines while turning the challenges of a retrofit into opportunities for innovation.
Lab Design News spoke with Shrei about workflow optimization, stakeholder collaboration, and turning design challenges into opportunities. Make sure to get your conference ticket so you can be in the audience for this insightful session!
Q: What makes your Lab Design Conference talk especially relevant to the current trends and challenges in laboratory design?
A: So many companies are opting to transform non-traditional spaces into laboratories. This can be due to costs, short timelines, and limited real estate options. Our talk will review how a company transformed an old telecommunications center into multiple functioning laboratory spaces in less than nine months.
Q: What practical tips can lab users apply to optimize their current space, without a major renovation or rebuild?
A: CLEAN UP THE SPACE. Remove clutter, throw away things that aren’t regularly in use, remove personal items, and then organize the items that are left. Everything should have a labeled location and a specific use. Laboratorians are natural pack rats, so fight the urge to keep items that aren’t useful in current workflows.
Q: What’s one lesson from a past project that significantly influenced your approach to lab design?
A: Much too often, lab leaders attempt to create a space around a broken workflow. I’ve learned that even the best designs can be useless if the workflows and processes are bad. The best approach is to create a solid and streamlined workflow, then create an environment that supports and preserves those workflows.
Q: What’s one soft skill you believe every lab design professional should cultivate, and why?
A: Listening to the end-user is imperative. Although you may know the design business, no one knows their business better than them. Take time to let them walk you through their processes. Let them show you how they move about the space. This will help you, as a designer, remember important points and factors that should be considered in the new design. It will also preserve some of the muscle memory for the people working in the new space, making their transition much easier.
Q: Have you attended the Lab Design Conference before? If this is your first time, what are you most looking forward to?
A: This is my first time attending the conference and I’m most looking forward to observing what types of professionals attend conferences like these. Are they mostly lab professionals? Architects? I’m very interested in learning what the different attendees gain from attending these events.
Register now to secure your ticket to the 2026 Lab Design Conference!
